Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /media/www/hollywood/Web/releases/20150325105258/vendor/doctrine/common/lib/Doctrine/Common/Annotations/FileCacheReader.php on line 202
Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /media/www/hollywood/Web/releases/20150325105258/vendor/doctrine/common/lib/Doctrine/Common/Annotations/FileCacheReader.php on line 202
Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /media/www/hollywood/Web/releases/20150325105258/vendor/doctrine/common/lib/Doctrine/Common/Annotations/FileCacheReader.php on line 202
American Sniper shoots for a third week on top of the U.S. box office

By:
WENN.com
Feb 01, 2015

Clint Eastwood's acclaimed Chris Kyle biopic American Sniper has scored a third week at the top of the U.S. box office. The film, in which Bradley Cooper portrays the late Navy SEAL, pulled in over $31 million (GBP20.6 million) over the Super Bowl weekend (ends01Feb15) for a total box office haul of $249 million (GBP166 million).
Eastwood's film has now become the most successful war movie in history, passing Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan.
Family film Paddington clings on to the number two spot for a third week, while time travel movie Project Almanac debuts at three .
Kevin Costner's new race drama Black or White and Jennifer Lopez's thriller The Boy Next Door round out the new top five.

American Sniper is continuing to take down the competition at the North American box office after adding another $64.4 million (£40.3 million) to its record-breaking haul. Clint Eastwood's Oscar-nominated new movie, starring Bradley Cooper as real-life war hero and U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, became the highest-grossing January film in box office history last weekend (17-18Jan15) when it raked in $89.2 million (£55.8 million), and now this week's additional haul has taken second place, too.
The film has now broken the $200 million (£125 million) barrier in the U.S. and Canadian markets alone.
The latest figures have also scored American Sniper the biggest non-debut weekend in box office history for an R-rated film - the previous record holder was The Passion of the Christ's $53 million (£33 million) in its second week on release.
Elsewhere in the box office chart, Jennifer Lopez's psychological thriller The Boy Next Door debuts in a distant second place, with $15 million (£9.4 million), followed by family film Paddington at three.
Johnny Depp and Gwyneth Paltrow's art-heist comedy Mortdecai failed to draw cinema-goers and opened with a disappointing $4.1 million (£2.6 million) to crawl into ninth place.
The movie, which was panned by critics, is Depp's latest flop, following 2013's The Lone Ranger and last year's (14) Transcendence.

Bradley Cooper and Clint Eastwood have been targeted by members of an Arab-American civil rights group who allege their movie American Sniper has led to an increase in threats made against Muslims living in the U.S. Members of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) have written to the film's director, Eastwood, and its star, Cooper, asking them to speak out against the threats which have allegedly made on social networking sites.
The film is based on the true story of U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, who served in Iraq from 2003 until 2009, and in a statement the ADC suggests the "majority of the violent threats we have seen over the past few days are result of how Arab and Muslims are depicted in American Sniper, adding, "(There have been) hundreds of violent messages targeting Arab and Muslim Americans from movie-goers."
ADC president Samer Khalaf writes in the letter to Eastwood and Cooper, "Your visibility, influence, and connection to the film would be a tremendous force in drawing attention to and lessening the serious dangers facing the respective communities."
The film became a box office hit in the U.S. following its release earlier this month (Jan15), and it is up for the Best Picture Oscar at next month's (Feb15) Academy Awards, while Cooper is nominated for Best Actor.

Seth Rogen has issued a public apology for his remarks about controversial movie American Sniper, insisting he did not mean to compare the film to Nazi propaganda.
The Knocked Up star hit headlines this week (beg19Jan15) after he posted a series of tweets in which he suggested the Bradley Cooper movie reminded him of a Nazi propaganda film featured in Quentin Tarantino's war movie Inglorious Basterds.
He subsequently returned to Twitter.com to clarify his comments, insisting he actually liked the Oscar-nominated film, which stars Cooper as real life crack shot sniper Chris Kyle, but his remarks sparked a storm of online outrage, with stars including Dean Cain and Kid Rock lining up to take shots at him.
Rogen has now waded into the furore once again in a bid to silence his critics, posting an online statement apologising for any offence he may have caused. The note, posted on Twitter, reads, "I said a sniper movie reminded me of a scene in another movie that involved a sniper movie. I didn't compare the two at all... People then claimed that I compared the movie to Nazi propaganda, something I would never do... and also implied that I somehow have something against Chris Kyle and veterans in general, neither of which are true in the least. My grandfather was a veteran. My comment about the movie was not meant to have any political implications... I'm sorry if this somehow offended anyone, but that was not my intention. I hope this clears things up."

Hollywood actor Bradley Cooper hosted a special screening of his movie American Sniper for wounded war veterans in Texas last week (ends18Jan15). The actor, who plays a crack shot military marksman in the Oscar-nominated drama, visited patients at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio on 15 January (15) and hosted a screening of the film for around 260 troops and staff.
Cooper also took part in a question-and-answer session about the film for an audience that included the father of the movie's real life subject Chris Kyle, who originally hailed from Texas and died at a shooting range in the state in 2013.
The actor told the veterans, "You have done so much for all the vets, it's the least we could do is come here and meet you guys."
Pictures posted on the facility's Facebook.com page show Cooper talking to the troops, and embracing Wayne Kyle.

Officials in Los Angeles have taken down a billboard promoting Bradley Cooper's American Sniper after a vandal scrawled the word "murder" on the movie poster amid a raging debate over the controversial film.
The Oscar-nominated picture, which features Cooper as real life crack shot U.S. soldier Chris Kyle, has become a hot topic in recent days as stars take sides over the divisive drama. It has now emerged that a billboard advertising director Clint Eastwood's film in Los Angeles had to be removed over the weekend (beg17-18Jan15) after it was daubed with red graffiti, which spelled out "Murder!" in large red letters next to an image of Cooper.
Local news outlet Ktla.com reports the billboard was taken down following the incident.
Filmmaker Michael Moore recently came under fire for calling snipers "cowards" in a tweet, while Seth Rogen also hit headlines after he appeared to compare the film to Nazi propaganda. He later insisted he "wasn't comparing the two", but actor Dean Cain joined the dispute by telling Rogen to "go to war" before criticising soldiers like Kyle, who claimed to have made more than 150 kills throughout his career in the U.S. army.
Other stars to have waded into the debate include singer Blake Shelton, who tweeted of the furore, "Sickens me to see celebrities or anybody slam the very people who protect their right to talk s**t... True Cowards." Jane Fonda, who was nicknamed Hanoi Jane for posing with opposition guns during the Vietnam War, risked further controversy by throwing her support behind the movie, calling it "powerful" and "sensational" in a message posted on Twitter.com.
Despite the fallout, American Sniper became a box office hit in the U.S. following its release this month (Jan15), but it scored disappointing sales in the U.K. on its opening weekend (16-18Jan15). The film will compete for the Best Picture Oscar at next month's (Feb15) Academy Awards, while Cooper is in line for Best Actor.

Oscar-tipped movie American Sniper has failed to replicate its U.S. success across the Atlantic by limping home in second place in the U.K. box office chart battle. The blockbuster, starring Bradley Cooper as real-life crack shot soldier Chris Kyle, opened to disappointing ticket sales of $4 million (£2.5 million) over the weekend (16-18Jan15).
It was easily beaten to the top spot by Liam Neeson's action sequel Taken 3, which notched up sales of $5.3 million (£3.3 million) in its second week of release.
The Theory of Everything came a close third with $3.7 million (£2.3 million), and the top five was rounded out by Into The Woods, with box office receipts of $3.2 million (£2 million), and kids' movie Paddington, which took $1.5 million (£943,000).

Seth Rogen has moved to clarify his controversial comments about Bradley Cooper's acclaimed movie American Sniper, insisting his remarks have been "blown out of proportion". The Knocked Up star hit headlines on Monday (19Jan15) after he tweeted about the Oscar-nominated drama and appeared to compare it to Nazi propaganda footage shown in Quentin Tarantino's acclaimed World War II film Inglourious Basterds.
Rogen wrote, "American Sniper kind of reminds me of the movie that's showing in the third act of Inglorious Basterds."
The post sparked a wave of online outrage, prompting Rogen to return to the site to clarify his comment, writing, "I just said something 'kinda reminded' me of something else. I actually liked American Sniper. It just reminded me of the Tarantino scene... I wasn't comparing the two. Big difference between comparing and reminding. Apples remind me of oranges. Can't compare them, though... But if you were having a slow news day, you're welcome for me giving you the opportunity to blow something completely out of proportion."
American Sniper, which is nominated for six Oscars including Best Picture, stars Cooper as real life U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, who endured four tours of duty in Iraq and notched up 160 confirmed kills.

Controversial documentary maker Michael Moore has risked sparking outrage by branding military snipers "cowards". The Fahrenheit 9/11 director took to social media over the weekend (17-18Jan15) following the release of Oscar-tipped movie American Sniper to insist crack shots who take out the enemy from a hidden position "aren't heroes".
In a post on Twitter.com, he wrote, "My uncle killed by sniper in WW2 (sic). We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot u (you) in the back. Snipers aren't heroes. And invaders r (are) worse."
American Sniper, which has been nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, stars Bradley Cooper as acclaimed U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, who endured four tours of duty in Iraq and notched up 160 confirmed kills. He died in an incident at a shooting range in Texas in 2013.